Anthropic has appointed former U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke (벤 버냉키) to its independent governance body, the Long-Term Public Benefit Trust. As a member of the trust, Bernanke will help the company understand how AI changes the economy.

CNBC reported on July 9 local time that the Long-Term Public Benefit Trust is Anthropic’s independent governance mechanism. It provides advice to the company and is involved in board composition. In a blog post, Anthropic explained that Bernanke’s role is to review AI’s economic impact and help the company make judgments from a long-term perspective.

In a statement, Bernanke said Anthropic created a unique governance structure to ensure AI’s long-term benefits far outweigh risks to humanity. He added he would contribute to this important mission in any way he can.

Bernanke served as Fed chair from 2006 to 2014. During his tenure, he faced the 2008 financial crisis and was at the center of the response that led to zero interest rates and quantitative easing. After leaving the Fed, he worked at the Brookings Institution, Citadel and Pimco, and in 2022 he received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for research into the causes of the Great Depression.

The appointment aligns with a broader move by Anthropic to highlight corporate governance and long-term control mechanisms together. Anthropic is an AI company founded in 2021 by researchers and executives who left OpenAI. The company has been valued at $96.5 billion, and there has been discussion that it may pursue a large initial public offering as early as this year.

The Long-Term Public Benefit Trust now has 4 members following the appointment. Its existing members are Neal Buddy Shah, chief executive of the Clinton Health Access Initiative, national security specialist Richard Fontaine, and international affairs specialist Mariano-Florentino Cuellar. Cuellar joined in January.

Anthropic said trust members do not hold shares in the company and are compensated only for time and services, not equity. New members are selected by existing trust members in consultation with the company. The structure is drawing attention because it is designed to allow outside figures to take part in management from the perspective of long-term risk and the public interest, regardless of the speed of the AI company’s growth.

With Bernanke joining, Anthropic will address not only AI’s social risks but also macroeconomic effects at the trust level. The company said Bernanke will contribute to improving its understanding of economic change.